AIAC Committee Update – October 2018

AIAC’s committees are central to the AIAC’s policy and advocacy functions. Members of these committees provide industry insights and guidance with respect to issues related to specific industry segments or topics of concern or interest.

Members wishing to join a committee can contact Marie-Soleil Jones. If you are a non-member and interested in joining a committee, please contact Bill Yetman.

Small Business Committee

The AIAC Small Business Committee held its most recent meeting on September 26, 2018. This meeting included a briefing on AIAC’s Vision 2025 which described how small businesses in the aerospace industry can contribute to this ambitious project. Additionally, the promising results of the Coffee with OSME program, were discussed in detail. Further discussion concerning this project will be elaborated during the upcoming Small Business Committee meeting; the meeting will include a conversation with Lorenzo Leraci, Director General for Public Services and Procurement Canada, and organizer of the Coffee with OSME program. This meeting is scheduled for October 31, 2018.

Market Access Committee

The AIAC Market Access Committee latest meeting included a detailed explanation of the CBSA Duty Drawback Program as well as the proposed Remissions Program for the Aluminum and Steel Tariffs. These presentations were performed by Mr. Jablonski, Manager, Trade Incentives of the Canada Border Service Agency and Michèle Govier, Senior Director, Trade Rules for Finance Canada. Committee members were provided with the contact information of the regional leads in respect to applications for the drawback program.

Civil Aviation Committee

The latest AIAC Civil Aviation Committee meeting was divided in two parts in order to allow for an Industry only session and a joint TCCA-Industry Session. In the first half of the committee meeting, members discussed the action items of previous meetings as well as the CMT and MMT meetings planned for this fall. The second part of the meeting included briefings, led by Robert Sincennes, Director, Standards for Transport Canada, on TCCA’s policies and regulations regarding cannabis use, the CAR 104 changes, the status and future plans regarding airworthiness and maintenance bilaterals and much more. Also, The Civil Aviation Committee has scheduled a teleconference discussion regarding TCCA CAR 104 Fee Proposals. This discussion is scheduled for October 4 from 13:00 – 14:30 and all committee members are invited to attend.

Technology & Aviation Committee

TICA’s schedule for the fall is very ambitious. With two roundtables and one committee meeting scheduled for the month of October, the members of this committee have the opportunity to receive, and to provide, great insights. On October 19, the committee has scheduled an ISC-BCIP Roundtable. This roundtable will include members of industry as well as government senior executives; the goal of this meeting is to discuss existing policies. For October 23, Guillaume Côté, Vice President of Technology and Innovation for the AIAC, is organizing a Digital Technology Roundtable which will be led by Gabe Batstone, Contextere, which is open to both members of TICA and AIAC members at large. If you wish to receive additional information concerning these events, please contact Guillaume Côté.

Space Committee

The AIAC Space committee held a discussion with Bill Gerstenmaier, Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations for NASA. Mr. Gerstenmaier promoted the importance of collaboration between Canada and the United States in terms of space exploration and expressed his deep appreciation of Canadian innovation. During the latest Space Committee meeting, Jim Quick, President and CEO of AIAC, provided the members with a detailed explanation of Vision 2025 and what this project entails for space. The successes of the Day on the Hill and Bring your MP to Work events were espoused. Mike Greenley, Group President of MDA, provided a throughout description of the Don’t Let Go campaign and industry coalitions. Finally, the vast array of space related events coming up this fall were discussed.

For more information concerning any of the AIAC Technical Committees, or to become a member, please contact Marie-Soleil Jones at MSoleilJones@aiac.ca.